


When a Badger takes in a Snake.

by orphan_account



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen, Pre-War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-09
Updated: 2015-02-09
Packaged: 2018-03-11 06:37:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3317687
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gryffindor v. Slytherin Rivalries are infamous, and Slytherin tends to have a reputation as friendless.</p><p>But Pomona knows that sometimes all the meanest snakes need is someone to listen.</p>
            </blockquote>





	When a Badger takes in a Snake.

When the Slytherin students notice the old woman in their part of the castle, they raise eyebrows but say nothing. She's a professor, after all, and they know better than to do something to lose points for something as stupid as defending their territory against a teacher. Besides, a couple of third years whisper to the firsties, Snape will handle her.

The seventh and sixth year slytherins don't seem to respect him too much, and the occasional errant younger year will try to cross the line, but for the most part the students respect that while Professor Snape may only have left Hogwarts a few years ago himself- he's a force not to be messed with. It's unlikely that he'll stand for another Professor in Slytherin territory for long, and even the older years are placing bets on whether or not their will be a public spectacle and if so- when.

Except the grumpy potions master doesn't even seem to have noticed that there's another Professor impeding on his turf. He doesn't snarl or glare at her during meals, no one sees them exchange words in corridors, and the old woman continues to traipse through their corridors only to disappear at random points. Some of the snakes have even taken to trying to follow her, but she either notices and sends them off to bed, or manages to shake them with unsettling ease.

Which is when the rumors start. Ranging from the nefarious to the more benign. That he's blackmailing her. That she's blackmailing him. That he's secretly polyjuicing himself into other professors in order to catch troublemakers who are usually on edge around him. That he's polyjuicing himself into other professors in order to find out the rest of the professors' opinion on him. That they're having an affair. That the Headmaster is making her check in on him or that there is a staff member buddy system.

He's aware of all of this, of course, which is why he's careful not to acknowledge her outside of curt greetings at the staff table. Pomona just gives him that benign smile and doesn't insist.

It's that weird mixture of stubborness and nonpushiness that allows their friendship to work.

She doesn't ask him to behave any differently in public, in fact, barely asks that he behaves any differently in private. Beyond the way she smiles at all the professors, she doesn't acknowledge him in the hallways or during meals, trying to respect the persona that he has set up with the students.

Knows it aggravates him that she calls it a persona, but says it anyway.

"This is who I am, I don't know why you expect any differently of me." He mutters, waving a tumbler of scotch one Friday night. 

"So you say, dear. I know how hard it is to gain the student's respect, even being much older than they are. I can't blame you for being a bit harsh. Though I do wish you'd learn better ways to control the classroom. "

He only glares and she chuckles benignly, and their evening goes on. Conversation isn't always easy, though he finds her input about potion's ingredients helpful most of the time. She even takes suggestions on how to plant things in order to make them more useful. They steer clear of discussing the students for the most part, unless she thinks one of the little snakes is being bullied. Slytherin may have a reputation as being stand offish, but she's not so blind as to not see that they're often forced there. Wounded animals lashing out in order to protect themselves. 

Which is probably why she tries so hard to be there for him, even if that just means listening to him rant on Friday evenings and occasionally bringing him lunch on Sundays. Severus always complains that it makes him feel like a child when she chides him into taking a break from the work room, but Pomona can't help but think that there's some part of him that appreciates it. Appreciates that there's someone out there who cares if he wastes away, or if he's having a bad week. Minerva and him seem to have a sort of frenmie relationship going on, more rivalry and bitter sarcasm than is perhaps healthy, and while Pomona is glad that there is someone else who he can talk with, she worries that the Transfiguration professor eggs on a lot of the bad behavior that she wishes he'd give up.

Minerva would tell her that was her hufflepuff nature shining through, thinking that Gryffindors and Slytherins could be friends, but the house rivalry has always seemed so silly to the herbology professor. It definitely encouraged some down right unhealthy actions, and she was pleased that her little badgers didn't seem too plagued by it. 

Severus for his part won't go so far as to say that he appreciates her company, and he's never been seen patrolling near her chambers, but she can't help but notice that if she doesn't show up Friday night, he can be found at the green houses on Saturday. Collecting ingredients of course, not checking in on a friend or anything ridiculously sentimental like that. She smiles when he brings her potions to help with the latest insect infestations, refrains from hugging him when he personally brings by a pepper up when he notices her coughing during meals, and doesn't argue when he claims that it was just because he needed to grab some hellabore anyway.

Pomona doesn't kid herself that he'll ever be a super affectionate person, Severus is much too guarded for that. But it's the little things that matter.

**Author's Note:**

> er. not my usual at all.  
> but it's a gift fic for a friend.  
> alsosnapedeservesafriend.


End file.
